Beyonce has seemingly done her part in the movement to get kids active and healthy, partnering with Michelle Obama to create a music video for the “Let’s Move!” campaign in 2011; however, some aren’t happy that she’s also partnered with Pepsi as the new face of their ad campaign and say she’s undoing all the hard work put into focusing America’s children towards a healthier lifestyle. They’re so unhappy, in fact, that a petition to “disinvite” her from performing the National Anthem at the president’s inauguration was recently posted on We The People.
“Knowles is renting her image to a product that may one day be ranked with cigarettes as a killer we were too slow to rein in. From saying, as she once did in referring to Let’s Move, that she was “excited to be part of this effort that addresses a public health crisis,” she’s become part of an effort that promotes a public health crisis,” wrote New York Times columnist Mark Bittman.
The petition, created by “The Family Dinner” author Laurie David, was pulled down three days after it was posted to We The People, a public site for government-related issues. The White House released a statement regarding their decision to pull the petition, saying that Beyonce’s performance is “not something the White House actually has jurisdiction over. Selecting performers is a function of the Presidential Inaugural Committee, not the White House. We the People’s terms of participation state that users cannot post “petitions that do not address the current or potential actions or policies of the federal government.”
Beyonce’s deal with Pepsi is worth around $50 million, but some of that will go into her future creative endeavors rather than straight into her bank account. In exchange, she’ll appear in their ads, on the sides of Pepsi cans and bottles, and will appear in a Super Bowl performance.